Make Believe
by sailormai20
Summary: Hinata ponders on Sasuke and the first time they met. Slight AU


The moment she stepped through the arch-way gate, she was filled with awe. It wasn't because the gate led to somewhere like a magic garden or that it was her first time coming here. On the first Sunday of every month, her mother would dress both her and Hanabi in their kimonos and they'd take the train to possibly the most amazing place in the world - Takarazuka.

Today was slightly different in the fact it wasn't the first Sunday of the month - rather, it was the beginning of a new show. _Don Carlos _had just finished and the lovely ladies of Takarazuka were again performing one of their favourites: _The Rose of Versailles._ As such, the gates were flooded with eager fans of all ages well before the show was due to start. The gift shop was full of people buying as much as they could afford, energetically chatting about their favourite star and the various eateries were brimming, emitting warmth and delicious smells.

When the show finally begun, no matter what differences the audience had previously held, they instantly fell into synchronisation. They sighed, they cheered, they applauded and cried. The Takarazuka was a fantasy world, designed to send you to another place - it did that without rival; nothing could equal they vibrant energy and sheer passion of the women actors and the power they held over the crowd.

Once the main show ended, the Hyuuga's excited for drinks. Standing alone while Hanabi and her mother went to the bathroom, Hinata soon found herself staring at a young boy, roughly the same age as herself. Dark hair matched his eyes perfectly but contrasted his pale skin. To be honest, before then she had thought the audience had only comprised of girls but there he was, sitting as casual as anything in a sea of chattering females.

Needless to say, Hinata was curious. Once, or perhaps twice, she had seen boys at the Takarazuka. Usually they slept during the show or were bratty, playing games or being obnoxious and rude. Yet the boy across the hall was reading the show guide with rapt attention. Maybe it was because he had felt her staring, but almost instantly, that same intense attention was placed on her. Blushing at the fact she'd been caught. The young blue haired girl turned away quickly, but apparently he'd being caught in curiosities clutches too, for it was only a moment later and he was in front of her.

He didn't say anything, but on his extended hand was a paper rose, minus the stem. She frowned at it before accepting the origami. "Why doesn't it have a stem?"

"Stems have thorns, but without them, roses are soft and pretty. I think thats what you are."

She decided, at the moment when she turned scarlet and he laughed with her rather than at her, that he was much the same.

Unfortunately, her mother chose that moment to return and drag her away for drinks. Luck appeared to be on her side, however, as the Hyuuga matriarch spoke to the boy. "I hope you didn't wander from your mother, Sasuke. She'd be worried sick!" Sasuke replied with a cute smile, saying he'd done no such thing. At the moment, Hinata guessed that while he wasn't thorny, he could easily trip you up with various tricks.

She giggled. His smile grew, focussed on her.

She watched as he returned to the theatre, walking next to his mother and carrying her merchandise. The revue was vibrant and spectacular, with loud music and colorful costumes. But her attention was still focussed on Sasuke, whose large eyes and unwavering attention gave away his genuine interest.

There had been no time to find him or talk to him after that. Her mother had scolded her for being in such a foul mood for 'no reason what so ever', but Hinata hadn't cared. How on earth was she supposed to talk to Sasuke again was the only problem in her five year old mind, and nothing was going to distract her from her elaborate and childish plans to find him.

Thankfully she didn't need to sneak into the Hokage's office or cause a riot as she had planned. She had been right when she thought Sasuke was the same age as her - they were placed in the same class at the Academy and soon formed a close bond. He was cheerful and honest, understanding her shyness and accepting it without problems. After all, he could talk enough for both of them. In turn, she would listen to him both adore and complain about his brother and boost his ego when he needed it.

To her, he was like the Takarakuza girls. Of course, he wasn't a _girl_, but he was still very similar to them. He was pretty, almost effortlessly so, and very skilled at whatever he tried. Even at a young age, he seemed to demand and receive respect in addition to already having a legion of fangirls. Apart from that, even though he was very solidly real, at the same time, he almost seemed to be something too perfect to be real.

Maybe it was that he was already learning a variety of jutsu while she was still struggling with basic combat skills. Maybe it was the aloofness he gave to the crowd of other girls compared to the brief attention he gave her that likened him to one of the 'male' stars who would briefly adore one audience member before returning to the stage. Maybe it was his maturity, maybe maybe maybe...

After the massacre of the Uchiha Clan, Sasuke had distanced himself. Perhaps that was another way he reminded her of the Takarazuka girls who played male roles. They often denied themselves the feminine aspects of life, such as marriage and dating and other fun and girly activities, in order to achieve their goal - stardom. Sasuke's goal was far more bloody and wild, but wasn't he fulfilling a similar concept? It hurt that he seemed to threw away their friendship, but she still had hoped that once he had either 'grown out' of his quest for vengeance or eventually fulfilled it, he would be able to go back to his normal lifestyle. Back to her. (Whenever Hinata thought of those thoughts from back then, apart from how childish they were, their naivety cut at her - how could one ever go back to normality after killing their brother who had killed their family in cold blood?)

She knew Ino and Sakura and practically every other girl 'loved' him. It wasn't until he left that she realised, that _maybe _her admiration had crossed that boundary too. But what about her feelings for Naruto? Was that perhaps another reason Sasuke had left? Had her fawning over the blonde boy broken his last bond within the village? (That was something she preferred not to think about - she didn't want to know the answers her mind may give her.)

It may not have been obvious, but Hinata had wanted him back as much as anyone else. Originally, she'd simple wanted Naruto to smile again. When she realised that that reason wasn't entirely true, it was "I want my old friend back"; afterwards, she wondered how anyone had thought her lies were anything remotely related to the truth, but then again, she had never been brave enough to actually say her true thoughts out loud.

But that was all in the past now. Again, the Leaf had failed. He was gone and now he was wanted by the five great nations. Perhaps Naruto would run into him again (if they both survived the war) and managed to bring him home. Hopefully he could charm Tsunade into simply letting the last Uchiha live peacefully, rather than have him imprisoned or executed. Hinata wasn't the same naive little girl anymore though - even if Tsunade was to be persuaded, Sasuke had still offended the other Kages and she believed with all her heart they would not be as lenient toward him.

But again she thought back to the day they'd met at the Takarazuka. Back then, Hinata had been a girl impressed by flashy costumes and song and dance. Back then, he'd simply been a boy with big dreams and a big smile. Perhaps, if Naruto did succeed in his own quest and Sasuke did return, maybe, just _maybe_, they could go back to those times and he could become her too-good-to-be-true Prince.

At least that was what she liked to make believe in her dreams.

* * *

And she's back! This was for a contest at the SasuHina-fanclub on DA.  
No, I haven't forgot about my other fics, so don't worry~ I've just had midterms, spring break and now I'm ill Xx

Well...This really didn't come out as planned, and I'm not entirely happy with it, but I like it how it is too...  
I used the theme of 'fairy tale'. While technically not a fairy tale, the Takarazuka Review is a fantastical place meant to take you away from the everyday mundane, so.. (I went and saw Don Carlos - I may have a girl crush on him/her)  
(For those who don't know, the Takarazuka is a Japanese theatre group only participated in by women. The first half of the show is a show (Rose of Versailles is their favourite), then interval, then the Revue, which is just full on dance and song with little to no plot and heaps of feathers)

Naruto is not something I normally dabble in, despite my strong interest. The first Naruto fic I wrote was crack I did for homework in five minutes when I was 13...I never really started paying attention to Hinata until the Pein Arc but since then, she has become my favourite female character. However, I've never read much about her (fic wise) and have never wrote about her, so this was an interesting experience for me~

(I think this took somewhere between 1 and 2 hours on and off to write and is probably the first time I haven't listened to music while writing...)  
(Also, first time entering a contest X.x)

Please review and let me know what you thought!


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